Surface storage options

In addition to the disk space on your Surface, you have external storage options like OneDrive (cloud storage), USB drives, and memory cards.

How much space do I have on my Surface?

To see how much drive space you have on your Surface:

In the taskbar, select File Explorer and select This PC.

The amounts of available free space and total available space are shown. If you're running low on space, the drive will be marked in red.

Note

Pre-installed software and apps use a significant amount of space. To learn how much, see Surface storage.

OneDrive: Cloud storage

OneDrive is free cloud storage that comes with your Microsoft account. It’s like an extra hard drive that’s available from all your devices. For info on using OneDrive, see Using OneDrive on Surface.

Note

OneDrive syncs files from the cloud to your Surface. Syncing or sending data across a mobile broadband connection could result in extra charges. For more info, see Manage your mobile broadband data usage.

Removable storage options

You can use USB storage or a microSD card of any size with your Surface to store your documents, music, videos, and pictures. Surface works with standard microSD card formats—microSD, microSDHC, and microSDXC. If you have a Surface Book, you can also use a full-size SD card.

For the locations of the USB port and microSD or SD card slots on your Surface, see Surface features.

To open files from an external device:

Insert a USB flash drive or other USB storage device into the USB port, or insert a microSD or SD card into the card slot on your Surface.

Select the notification that appears in the lower-right corner of the screen.

Select Open device to view files or Sync digital media files to this device.

Integrate your file storage with Libraries

Libraries let you browse folders from many locations in one place. For example, you could have documents from several locations on your OneDrive, plus photos and drawings on your Surface, all in one Library. You can even include folders in your Homegroup or on a connected USB device or microSD card.

In Windows 10, the Libraries folder is hidden by default. Here’s how to view your Libraries folder:

In the taskbar, select File Explorer.

Select View > Options.

Under Navigation pane, select show libraries.

Select OK.

In File Explorer, select Libraries.

Want to create a new library? Here's how:

Open your Libraries folder.

Press and hold (or right-click) an open area in the contents pane, select New, and then slide to select Library.